Contributed by Cinema Treasures

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The first features booked into the Metro when it reopened under the management of Cineplex Odeon in the summer of 1986 were 'She's Gotta Have It' and 'A Great Wall'. It operated as a first-run house until January of 2003 when the landlord suddenly shut its doors as the result of a lease dispute with Clearview Cinemas, which had assumed control of the Metro (and several other Manhattan theatres) in the fall of 1998 when Cineplex Odeon was forced to divest itself of a handful of sites around the country in anticipation of its merger with Loews Theatres. Suddenly, in April of '03, the Metro - still a Clearview property - opened for business again (showing 'Chicago' and the Chris Rock comedy 'Head of State' on its two screens); however, rumors still abound of its eventual closing, to be possibly replaced by yet another UWS high-rise apartment tower.

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Sadly, as of tonight, the marquee now reads "Sorry We're Closed," although as of last weekend it was still open. The low-rise building to its north is empty and I've heard they're going to be razed, so things don't look good for the Metro. I won't miss the uncomfortable seats, but I will miss its mere existence as the only movie theater betw. 84th St. and the Magic Johnson on 125th. If anyone knows anything about the future of the building I'd love to know. Maybe at least the facade will be preserved!

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The Midtown, designed by the architecture firm of Boak & Paris, opened in 1933. From 1948 through April 1972, it was part of the Brandt circuit, featuring sub-run foreign and independent fare starting in the 1950s. It exhibited films such as Belle de Jour, Shame (and just about every other Bergman movie), Breathless, Hiroshima Mon Amour, Repulsion, L’Avventura, Straw Dogs, and Gimme Shelter, though never in exclusive engagements. After Brandt's management, it operated as an adult film venue.
In 1982, its operation was taken over by Dan Talbot's New York Cinemas and it was twinned. Renamed the Metro, it opened for business as an exhibitor of repertory art house fare on October 1, 1982. The facility's HVAC system was overhauled and new bathrooms were installed in 1986.
On July 17, 1987, management of the theatre was assumed by Cineplex Odeon. Clearview Cinemas operated the theatre from December 1998 through August 26, 2004.
It is expected to be re-opened, with new seats and screens and under the management of Peter Elson, in November 2004.
The theatre's Art Deco facade received landmark designation in 1989.
Regarding some of the other comments about this theatre:
1. If one discounts for occassional short-term closings which generally mark the history of old cinemas, the Metro is the 2nd-longest operating movie theatre in Manhattan, exceeded in age only by the New Coliseum, which opened 13 years earlier. I am excluding Radio City which, though it opened at the end of 1932, is not primarily a film exhibitor.
2. Regarding the Midtown moniker, I think there are two, likely related, explanations. First off, the theatre is located at the "approximate" halfway point on Manhattan's north-south axis. There are about 120 blocks above, and 120 below, the Metro. Second, one must consider the context of the times in which the theatre was built. It began operation less than two years after the George Washington Bridge opened to traffic on 10/25/1931. The location of the Loew's 175th Street theatre, opened in 1930, is evidence of the belief of the time that the GWB would transform upper Manhattan and, probably, result in the neighborhood in which the Metro is located becoming known and thought of as "Midtown."